Tag Archives: hiking

Play Hooky

Ditchin, Absent, Gone

break free, break loose, break off, break out
bolt, elude, evade, flee, fly, relief, vent

work slave zombie

Finding ways to ditch work or school has always been a challenge for dedicated students or work-o-holics. Generally (rat race) Americans work more hours, longer hours and take less vacation days than any other population on the planet, the studies have found.

Californians have a true recreation paradise at their back door… and very few get to enjoy it. Too busy in the city. There are so many neat places to go & cool people to see on the back roads of California, that a whopping 5 paid holidays we get per year just isn’t enough.

Plus there is always so much work to do. Well, guess what? The work will just keep on coming, and coming, until you decide YOU really need a break. Taking that break doesn’t have to cost a fortune either.

hookie, hooky?

The slang word conjures up 10 year old kids, neighborhood pals, riding bikes, running around old abandon shacks & exploring deserted mines. Swimming holes, rope swings and sunshine. A whole day of rest & relaxation, the fun kind. Yep. When you were a youngster, you knew the real meaning of enjoying a day. Free time was almost ALL the time and you lived each day with a fresh outlook.

NOTE to self: TAKE THE BACK ROADS, as much as possible.

Springtime, waterfalls, wildflowers. When it has been a long hard, snowy winter, a sunny day is a huge welcome in February. Come March and April, people want to be outside more, before the summer heat begins.

April 20 is a popular day to enjoy nature, annually. The month of April is prime time for traveling, with Easter weekend and Earth Day celebrations. 420 Camp Outs, Earth Day, River Festivals, Wildflower Blooms. Usually the first camping of the season for true die-hards.

A to Z California

see all California small towns & vacation destinations

5 good reasons
to take that extra day off of work/school

As you may have noticed by now, adult-hood is not all it’s cracked up to be. Work, chores, errands, sleep, drive & more work. Time to re-evaluate what is or isn’t happening in your life. If it’s travel you desire you don’t hafta wait until your are retired. Total Escape is here to help with thousands of pages & ideas. Explore close to home. Travel local regions in California, more often, for less money.

1. Cuz You Deserve It

Yes, dang it, you do. And you know it.
Your year is becoming a series of uneventful weekends all strung together. You need a fresh dose of reality & a weekend away does wonders. Clears the head of daily worries, opens up a fresh perspective, makes you think a little better. Whether it’s fly fishing, antique shopping or laying in a hammock near a creek, it all helps you. Subtly, but it does.

At the desk

bodie ghost town

2. Mental Health Day

We are a nation of work-o-holics. It’s that simple. We are becoming an impatient, unpleasant, selfish society that is always in a rush. What kinda life of daily grind is that? As we all have heard, Europeans get x-number of weeks for holiday time. Twice or three times more than us Americans. Do they know something we don’t? Is it time to slow down & use our sick days for our mental health? When your body is healthy, you might not get sick so often, so go for a hike to celebrate. Stop the chatter about it & do it. Enjoy life, every weekend. Recognize every holiday, 3 day weekends & plan something special for yourself and/or your loved ones.

3. Nature’s Well of Wellness

Fresh mountain air, glowing orange sunsets, the scent of cedar pines, the crashing of ocean waves & the warmth of a fireplace or campfire. A full day of hiking the high Sierra or just lazily fishing from your boat. Nature has magical ways of healing even the most weary souls. Come back from your weekend, exhausted & amazed OR refreshed & fully rested … it’s all up to you. We live in a beautiful place. California has a thousand destinations for you to enjoy. Why not start a health habit of traveling?

HelpMeEscape

4. Less Crowds

Summer is slowing down & autumn will soon set in. The hordes of tourists are thinning out, now that all the kids are back in school. This is the time to plan that weekend in the mountains, rent a cabin, a historic hotel or camp out along the river. Ask for an extra day, a Friday off & make that weekend a 3 day mini vacation. Traffic heading outta town is way better on a Thursday night or Friday morning, than the usual ‘mass exit’ weekend jam. Sitting on the freeway not moving is no fun at all. It’s a horrible way to start a vacation & the weekend escape rush hours can be grueling, so try to plan around it.

5. Cheaper Off Season Rates

Many small independent lodges, like the ones we feature here on Total Escape, usually drop their rates in their off-season. Call ahead to find out when the rates are best. Often the same thing goes for recreational adventures, tour companies & air fares. Each season has it’s own unique characteristics, so plan your stay according to preference. There is always a nice balance with winter, as the Golden State has plenty deserts to explore, as well as snowy slopes. Summer always looks great for the high Sierra but the coastlines are best in Fall. So as you can see there is no use waiting for the perfect time to travel, cuz in California the weather is almost always gorgeous.

Marc at Sunset“Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature’s peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you…while cares will drop off like autumn leaves.”
– John Muir

The California National Forests, State Parks & National Parks have a million & one things for you to do to enjoy your surrounding, or choose to do nothing at all in some pretty spectacular scenery.

your choice

California Weekends, Unexpected Day Off, Back to Nature

BLM / State Parks / National Forests / National Parks

BLM California

State Park California

National Parks California

US NFS

Camp Hygiene

Traveling & Camping: Personal Hygiene

You’ll often hear city folks or gay guys exclaim ” Geesh. I look like hell” – which is usually followed by, “but I am having such a good time this weekend”.

Yep, I hear ya sister. Who cares what you look like! As long as you are enjoying nature, staying safe & breathing fresh air, that’s all that matters. Bonding with the Earth is something most of us all crave, at one level or another. We’re here to help make that experience better. Soul searching solo camp-out, group camping at a campground w/ reservations or just a weekend fishing in a remote wilderness, via backpack.

looklikehell

aquarius_trio

  • bathroom breaks
  • be bear aware
  • body odor
  • blisters – feet (see below)
  • breath & teeth
  • chapped lips/nose
  • constipation
  • dry eyes & irritation
  • dry skin & bug bitescheck
  • food storage
  • outdoor hair-do
  • sex outdoors

The vision of a typical “Mountain Man” has changed drastically in the last several decades. Lumbersexual, anyone? Pioneer homesteaders, Trappers, Hunters, Fishermen are rare, mostly found in mountain regions, like Sierra Nevada or Northern California. Chainsaws and all.

Grizzly Adams – big, rugged guy with long hair, un-shaven, dry skin & maybe even white cracked lips. Now-a-days it’s all about the comfort, convenience and healthy choices. The city-life and polished look will not be practical, nor last very long outside in the elements.

cyamacapeak_i

Media can glorify outdoor recreation, and feature extreme examples of super fit people, or once-in-a-lifetme adventures.  It misleads the general public into a ‘Barbie style vision’ of what back country, wilderness & camping will be like.

Mainstream news about camping and hiking is often BAD news of river drownings, lost hikers, bad accidents and avalanches. Rarely will they focus on the positives of enjoying the outdoors. Remember, THEY want you indoors, glued to the tube and sucking up all that advertising!

campUNLESS YOUR FAMILY CAMPED while growing up, most of us get “into the outdoors” with little to no education on the wild. The Wilderness: areas without electricity, spotty cell phone coverage, and no medical facilities. There is a lot to learn, if you want to actually enjoy yourself outdoors, be well fed, comfortable, get good sleep – and not get lost.

Orienteering (using a real compass) and topographic map reading are skills worth exploring. Campfires and cooking over the fire may interest you, if you plan to spend large amounts of time outdoors.

BATHING outdoors? When a cold creek is not readily available, then search for piped water and a spigot. Or pack your own solar shower, designed for campers in mind. Only certain campgrounds have showers available and many will require coins (quarters) to operate.

campfire

The topic of ‘outdoor hygiene’ rarely, if ever, comes up in camping conversations. This is what we’re here for. To answer all them embarrassing questions you never had the nerve to ask.

We’ve got the remedies for some physical discomforts many experience while enjoying life outdoors. In the last several years, with new products surfacing daily, there is no excuse not to be comfortable out in the wild. Much of this technique is simply being informed or packing well. Anyone can take advantage of enjoying the mother nature… comfortably & prepared.

< start here >

  • Choose a Gender (if this is impossible task, then maybe camping isn’t a good fit for ya)

potty

 

Cooling Feet
Cooling Feet in Baja’s Guadalupe Canyon

Feet First

Blisters on feet is usually due to friction, heat and moisture. Sweat makes the pore of your skin open up and expand. That along with hot temperatures, tight shoes or hiking boots and mileage, means you must stop and take more breaks.

Shoe/boot laces should be snug, but not too tight.

Take breaks and remove your shoes/boots – once per hour if needed. Pace yourself; know your limits on hiking distances. Plan to be setting a camp, or back at the car before dark.

Dipping your feet into a cold mountain stream is quite refreshing and can add pleasure to your day. Refilling water jugs while you’re at it. Dry feet thoroughly before putting socks back on. Remember the wilderness goal is not always to reach the destination, but to have a great time outdoors. A rewarding experience, but worn out. When feet hurt or become blistered, the fun becomes physical pain.

NO SANDALS

Do not hike miles in sport sandals or flips flops. You can ruin your arches and injure your feet, especially on granite mountain trails. Sandals are great around water, lounging at camp or walking to the outhouse, but consider wearing good shoes if you plan to walk or hike any significant distance.

hiker

NEW BOOTS

New footwear is notorious for creating blisters. Best to ‘break in’ your new shoes or boots on local trails, close to home. Wear them to work, wear them around town – so your foot can fit the boot, well before you try to “hike” in them.bootslandsend

Buying cheap hiking boots may have you swearing out on the trail, so bring backup shoes, just in case. While we’ve found top brand name (expensive) leather hiking boots failing faster than anticipated, we like the abundant shoe options now – trail runners, trekking boots and snow boots.

MOLE SKIN

Backpackers and avid day hikers like to carry this thin, soft fabric. A sticker side w/ mole skin  on one side. You might carry it for years, before needing it. Nice to have, cheap, thin and lightweight.

  • Clean and dry area around the blister.
  • With scissors, cut a piece of moleskin larger than your blister. *
  • Fold moleskin in half, adhesive side down.
  • Using blister as a reference; cut a semi-circle out of the center of the folded end of the moleskin. Result should be a square piece of moleskin with a hole in the center.
  • Remove adhesive backing and place over your blister, aligning your blister with the hole you made. The circle should completely surround blister without touching its edges.
  • You may need to double up if the blister is big. Mole foam is also available.

* Pre-cut sizes to avoid hiking w/ scissors.

TWO PAIR O SOCKS

Thinner nylon pair of sock worn against your skin can help with friction. Wear a thick or thin pair of cotton or wool socks, as the outside layer. Most of the friction will now be in between these sock layers.

OINTMENTS

Athlete’s foot, blisters, sun burn, foot powders, bee sting or injury; there are numerous cautions to consider. Feet are the wheels for your body. They get you to and from; feet are very important for your survival. Taking care of them is key, especially when outdoors.

see products for healthy feet



mountains

footed
Footed Rock at Bald Rock, Berry Creek, CA